The Infinite Game

So many organizations and individuals are obsessed with winning. But how do you win a game that never really ends? There is no such thing, for example, as "winning" business.

Simon Sinek'sStart With Why andLeaders Eat Lasthave helped millions of readers see the hidden rules that govern our behavior. NowThe Infinite Gamepicks up where those books left off, challenging us to rethink our perspective on how organizations really work. This time Sinek explores a deceptively simple question: How do you stay ahead in a game with no end?

Games like basketball and chess are finite, with firm rules and clear endpoints. But business, for example, is infinite -- there's ultimately no such thing as "winning" because there's always a new set of challenges. Those who thrive in the long run are those who play by infinite rules. They do things that enable them to out-maneuver, out-innovate, and outlast their competitors.

Trying to play an infinite game with a finite mindset can be catastrophic. During the Vietnam War, for instance, America won nearly every battle and killed many more enemy troops but still lost the war. The metrics by which they kept score ultimately didn't matter. The North Vietnamese were willing to endure any hardship for as long as it took to force the Americans to give up. The North Vietnamese played the Infinite Game.

Through a wide range of examples, Sinek explores how infinite players in any field can exhaust their competitors, stay ahead for the long run, and create strong organizations, built to weather nearly any storm. Great leaders instinctively play the infinite game rather than chase short-term gains. Now the rest of us can understand how they do it.

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